A few mid-game notes

Some mid-game notes as the Orioles lead the Tribe 2-0 after four innings:

* Zach Britton has allowed just two hits so far and has gotten seven groundball outs among his nine outs. It is always a good sign for Britton to get groundballs with his sinker.

Britton pitched to an ERA of 2.81 over his last five Triple-A starts before giving up four runs in four innings Tuesday at Minnesota. Britton had a 2.14-to-1 ratio of ground-to-air outs in his eight Norfolk starts.

* J.J. Hardy had been in a bit of a homer drought before his two-run shot in the first inning today. He had hit just one homer over his previous 19 games and just two over his previous 36 before connecting off Josh Tomlin. If Hardy gets a second hit today, it will be his first multi-hit game since July 3. He seems to slowly but surely be breaking out of his long slump.

* Nick Markakis is 1-for-3 today and that makes him 15-for-42 (.357) in 10 games since his return from the disabled list. His last 11 hits are singles.

* A victory today would give the Orioles a winning road trip to Minnesota and Cleveland. They are 4-2 on the trip with two games to play, counting this one. Their last winning road trip was a 4-1 run through Kansas City and Washington from May 16-20.

* The Orioles entered this series with a record of 7-18 in Cleveland since 2004 and an all-time mark of 20-50 at the ballpark now known as Progressive Field.